This event will bring together leading writers and scholars whose recent publications are charting new critical directions while drawing upon complex and varied historical contexts.

Each of the publications represents notable "firsts." Neal McLeod¹s edited collection of essays, Indigenous Poetics in Canada (Wilfrid Laurier UP 2014), is the first book in WLUP’s Indigenous Studies series, broadening the way in which Indigenous poetry is examined, studied, and discussed in Canada. James H. Cox and Daniel Heath Justice’s reader, The Oxford Handbook of Indigenous American Literature (Oxford UP, 2014), is the first comprehensive study to fully take into account the last fifteen years of critical dialogues in the field, emphasizing resurgence and recovery. The new critical edition of Anahareo’s memoir, Devil in Deerskins: My Life with Grey Owl, originally published 1972, is the first in the series, First Voices, First Texts (U Manitoba P 2014), reintroducing readers to a very important but largely forgotten memoir by one of Canada’s most talented Aboriginal writers.

The event aims to create a lively discussion and dialogue in a roundtable format that critically engages with the vibrant field of Indigenous literary studies. Each of the invited speakers will talk about their respective book projects, focusing on questions of resurgence in Indigenous literary studies in the 21st century, before opening up the floor to questions and comments.

Following the roundtable, there will be a book launch with authors and contributors present.

Invited Participants:Joanne Arnott is a Métis poet and author of 10 books of poetry and children’s literature. Her most recent publication is Halfling Spring (Kegedonce Press, 2014). She is a contributor to Indigenous Poetics.

Sarah Henzi is a Postdoctoral Fellow in the First Nations Studies Program (UBC) and a Sessional Instructor in the Department of First Nations Studies (SFU). Her research focuses on Indigenous literatures and New Media, pop culture and alternative genres. She is a contributor to The Oxford Handbook.

Daniel Heath Justice (Cherokee) is Canada Research Chair of Indigenous Literatures and Expressive Culture and Associate Professor of First Nations Studies and English at the University of British Columbia. He is the co-editor of The Oxford Handbook of Indigenous American Literature.

Neal McLeod (Cree) has two books of poetry: Songs to Kill a Wîhtikow (2005) and Gabriel’s Beach (2008). Cree Narrative Memory (2007) was nominated for book of the year at the Anskohk McNally Aboriginal Literature Awards. He teaches Indigenous studies at Trent University in Peterborough, Ontario. He is the editor of Indigenous Poetics.

Niigaanwewidam James Sinclair is Anishinaabe (St. Peter's/Little Peguis) and an Assistant Professor at the University of Manitoba. He is the co-editor of the award-winningManitowapow: Aboriginal Writings from the Land of Water (Highwater Press, 2011) and Centering Anishinaabeg Studies: Understanding the World Through Stories (Michigan State University Press, 2013). He is a contributor to Indigenous Poetics.

Katherine Swartile (Mohawk) is the daughter of Anahareo. She wrote the preface to the new edition of Devil in Deerskins.